Perth Wildcats MVP Bryce Cotton played through pain barrier

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Perth Wildcats superstar Bryce Cotton has revealed he played the second half of the season in pain and had to rediscover how to shoot the ball after seriously injuring a thumb last November.

Cotton missed two matches after injuring his right thumb against New Zealand, only to return, don his Superman cape and lead the Wildcats to another championship.

His heroics were rewarded on Saturday night when he was named the club’s MVP.

Cotton said he went close to missing a large chunk of the season.

“It was beat up a hell of a lot more than people thought. It was pretty close to being completely ruptured,” Cotton said.

“It was extremely difficult having to adjust and learning to shoot the ball all over again without having control on the palm of my hand.

“It was a huge adjustment.

“There were ups and downs and a lot of shooting slumps.

“The more I used it the more aggravated it would get.

Camera IconBryce Cotton didn’t show the effects of his injury.Picture: Getty Images

“I had to use game day as a shoot-around to find out how it was going to work.

“Some days the taping job was too tight or too loose, so it was a roller-coaster. I think we did a great job late in the season to find something that gave me the best comfort in a splint.”

Cotton shot at 40 per cent from the field throughout the season, down from 44 per cent the previous campaign and 47 per cent from his first year at the club.

His three-point accuracy fell from 45 per cent to 35 per cent.

But he also tweaked his game to play a distributing role which was pivotal in the Wildcats winning a ninth title.

“You’re going to go through adversity,” Cotton said.

“Whether it’s losses or

injuries, it’s never going to be a yellow brick road. You have to know that whatever comes your way, you need to find a way to get through it.”

Cotton played in Italy at the end of the 2017-18 NBL season, but will spend the coming months in the US rehabilitating his thumb to avoid further complications. He returns home tomorrow and is due back in Perth in August.

“When I came out here, I fell in love with the game all over again. I have Perth and my teammates to thank for that,” he said.